Conference Papers
Session IT3.2. Digital Archives connecting generations
1. Michael Walsh, Linda Barwick & Joe Blythe: Archiving Language and Song in Wadeye: Future access to song knowledge
Over the last 7 years we have been collaborating with composers, performers and language workers in Wadeye to document the large body of public dance and song traditions in Wadeye, with particular focus on the Djanba dance-song tradition belonging to Murriny Patha (Murrinh-patha) clans resident at Wadeye. Since we began the project the main singers and composers who initiated the project and worked with us for many years to translate and understand the cultural meanings of the songs have passed away, highlighting how quickly specialist song knowledge can become endangered. Since the main singers passed away we have observed a significant diminution in the number and duration of performances. While some of this may be due to a period of dormancy in consideration of the feelings of the family of the deceased composers and singers, it is foreseeable that in the future this database may be a major source of information about the songs and their meanings and contexts. While it is premature to expect extensive re-use of the materials in education or in new performances, the contributors, including performers, researchers, and technologists, have attempted to design the resource to enable such re-use. The database http://sydney.edu.au/wadeyesong collects together in one place a valuable heritage for future generations of Aboriginal people in the region, and we trust that the design of the database (thanks to Daniel Tse and Aidan Wilson) will trigger informed discussions leading to future efforts of this kind. Our presentation discusses the application’s technical design and content. This project was triggered by a concern from members of an older generation about the cultural transmission of their song traditions to younger generations.
Author bio: Since 1972 I have carried out fieldwork in the Top End of the Northern Territory, mainly in the Darwin-Daly region. This has been a mixture of academic endeavours as well as consultancies since 1979 mainly relating to Aboriginal land issues. From 1999 I have been involved in the revitalization of Aboriginal languages in NSW. From 1982 up til the end of 2005 I was part of the teaching staff of the Department of Linguistics, University of Sydney. Since then, as an Honorary Associate, I have continued my research interests especially through a large ARC grant involving a team of linguists and musicologists running from 2004 to 2010 [http://azoulay.arts.usyd.edu.au/mpsong/]. This project aims to document the song traditions of the Murriny Patha people and was triggered by community concern to preserve these traditions for future generations.
2. Margaret Gummow, John Giacon & Suellyn Tighe: Representation, culture and identity: Revitalising Gamilaraay Songs and Dances
Generally, throughout northern Australia songs are currently being recorded and documented as oral traditions are disintegrating. The urgency of this situation was identified in the 2002 Garma Statement on Indigenous Music and Performance. The National Recording Project for Indigenous Performance in Australia (NRP) was established to achieve this and aims to: record as many discreet performance repertoires as possible and hold these for future generations; establish Indigenous Knowledge Centres and similar digital archives to support local access to all data generated; and make these materials available to community health, education, governance and business initiatives as appropriate.
Although the NRP has already produced several significant studies on community and personal benefits gained through the repatriation of recordings and other related material, the focus of the project has been on northern Australia. In the southern part of the continent, it is sadly too late to record repertories and very difficult to record songs at all.
In April 2011, at the request of the Gamilaraay community based around the Coonabarabran area of New South Wales, Gummow, Giacon and Tighe presented a workshop using archival material from the AIATSIS audio visual archive collection. The workshop comprised teaching members of the community about old songs, dances and related traditions. Elders, community members, teachers and high school students attended the workshop in a quest to discover more about their past and, more importantly discuss ways of making this material relevant and accessible today. This paper discusses what happens when technology is used to enhance the transmission of culture. Several questions are examined: How do the roles of elders and young people relate to the technology and what new roles do different generations inherit from cultural material? How should this material be reintroduced back into the community? What benefits to the community do we expect from this re-introduction of cultural material.
Author bio: Margaret Gummow has worked in NSW communities for over 20 years. Her PhD project examined songs sung by Bundjalung (including Gidabal) singers. In previous work she has surveyed the AIATSIS collection of songs from all of NSW generally and is currently helping the Gamilaraay learn more about their performance traditions and reveal ways to make these traditions more relevant and vibrant today.
Author bio: Suellyn Tighe is a Gamilaraay woman from north western NSW. She has been delivering Gamilaraay language programs in schools and communities in her region for 11years. Suellyn has completed studies in Applied Social Linguistics at the South Pacific Institute of Linguistics in Melbourne, Bachelor of Education – Secondary Aboriginal Studies and Master of Indigenous Languages Education at University of Sydney.
Author bio: John Giacon has worked in Gamilaraay-Yuwaalaraay [GY] [language rebuilding since 1995, after an earlier career in schools. From 1994 he lived in Walgett, worked on the language programs in the area, was involved in the production of the GY Dictionary and other resources, and completed a BA Hons in Linguistics. Since 2006 he has lived in Canberra, doing a part-time PhD in the languages, teaching Gamilaraay at the University of Sydney and for TAFE, and involved in other aspects of language work.
3. Kirsten Thorpe and the Dharriwa Elders Group: Connecting digital research data and communities: ATSIDA & The Dharriwaa Elders
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Data Archive (ATSIDA), based at the University of Technology Sydney, is a national trusted repository for Indigenous data. This 'node' of the Australian Data Archive (ADA) manages the collection and storage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research data. Central to ATSIDA’s objectives and guiding principles is the notion of returning digital copies of research data to the Indigenous Australian communities from which it relates. This is being carried out through consultation with communities to ensure that the return of material is guided by community desires and needs. In 2010, ATSIDA began working with the Dharriwaa Elders Group (DEG) of Walgett, New South Wales (NSW) to identify historical collections relating to them, and to discuss the digital return of research material to their community. These conversations have created opportunities to connect generations, young and old, with research that documents the local community. In addition to this, the DEG and ATSIDA are discussing protocol issues that may arise in relation to the use of the data. This paper will be co-presented by representatives of the DEG and the ATSIDA to highlight return of data to the community, and discuss the potential benefits for the DEG in having research data and resources available for use within the community.
Author bio: Kirsten Thorpe, the ATSIDA Project Officer, is a descendant of the Worimi people of Port Stephens, New South Wales (NSW). ATSIDA (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Data Archive) has been established to build a specialised trusted management facility for Australian Indigenous research data. It is part of the Australian Social Sciences Data Archive (ASSDA) which securely stores all datasets with Australia’s leading computing facility, the Australian National University Supercomputer Facility (ANUSF). Kirsten has worked as a Professional Archivist for the past decade creating spaces of engagement for Aboriginal people to connect archival sources documenting their history. Previously Kirsten worked as the Senior Archivist – Aboriginal Liaison at State Records New South Wales, contributing to the team who created the In Living Memory exhibition and NSW Tour. Kirsten has been actively involved in the Indigenous Issues Special Interest Group of the Australian Society of Archivists since training as an archivist. Kirsten is currently studying a Masters of Information Management and Systems (Professional) at Monash University and has recently completed a Minor Thesis on Creating an Aboriginal Community Archive. The Dharriwaa Elders Group (DEG) was born 20 November 2000 after working together on projects since 1998. The Group took its name from one of its sacred sites - Narran Lakes - Dharriwaa (common meeting place) and its full members are Aboriginal people over 60 who live in Walgett. The DEG was auspiced by the Walgett Aboriginal Medical Service until 1 July 2005, when it became autonomous. Projects of the Group aim to:
•Support Aboriginal elders to resume leadership roles in the community, keeping active and healthy
•promote local Aboriginal cultural knowledge and identity
•develop the Walgett Aboriginal community